Plans
by OpheliacAngel
Summary: While Eddie's life is spinning out of control, Coop's spinning in his new office chair. A Halloween gift for LifeLover on AO3, the only person I've found who ships these two.


**Title:** Plans

 **Author:** OpheliacAngel

 **Pairings:** Eddie/Coop

 **Genres:** Romance/Friendship

 **Rating:** Teen

 **Summary:** While Eddie's life is spinning out of control, Coop's spinning in his new office chair.

 **A/N:** For LifeLover, the only person I've found who ships these two. Happy Halloween!

* * *

Coop's spinning in the chair in his office when Eddie walks in.

For Eddie, who's just recently been given back his job and despite how genuinely ridiculous this sounds coming from him, this sight is the highlight of his day. He's only been back at work for a little over a week and has been so busy that he doesn't think he's seen the doctor and his once good friend more than twice. The once part freaks him out a little, cause he and Coop did used to be good friends, enough to have lunch together occasionally and be a shoulder to cry on when the other didn't have a date on their nights off. Okay, so that last part was mainly Coop crying on Eddie's shoulder, but Eddie has to make compromises somewhere.

Eddie knocks on the open door. Clearly, by the way Coops spins around and stares up at him excitedly, the chair is new. Eddie clears his throat and attempts to keep his composure, still, he realizes how much Coop can probably see, or tell, just by the fact that Eddie's here.

He's sorry too, that they fell out of friendship when Eddie lost his job, when he got into all that mess. Sure, friendship is a two-way street, but Coop was the one to painstakingly initiate their friendship, which means it's Eddie's turn to get it back. And now Eddie has to get good at kissing ass and making up.

"Hey. Was wondering if you wanted to get out of here and get a beer?"

Coop's apologetic grin has Eddie nearly gripping the edge of the door; he really wasn't planning on getting shot down tonight. "Would if I could, Eddie. But I'm just off duty. Don't get off for another…," he glances down at the fancy watch on his wrist, "two and a half hours."

Eddie shrugs. No sense giving up now. "That's fine, can find something to do while I'm waiting."

Coop's grin is appreciative this time. "Seriously? 'Cause I can get you a magazine or something?" A joke… huh. Eddie expected him to not quite know what to say to his offer, but if Coop wants to play with him then Eddie can hardly begrudge him that. Coop stops spinning in his chair and looks at him seriously, but yet with those puppy dog eyes that secretly scream out to Eddie that he wants him to stay. Too bad Coop doesn't realize that he doesn't have to 'secretly' ask. "It's Halloween man, you don't wanna be hangin' out here waiting for me to get off work."

"First mistake, Coop?" Eddie crosses his arms and leans against the door. He ain't going nowhere. "Don't presume to know what I want to do. Second of all, no plans equals lonely night. More than happy to hang around here."

The doctor spins around one last time in his chair before jumping out. "Okay. I'll meet you down in the lobby when my shift's over." He pats Eddie's shoulder and leaves then.

Eddie's heart beats wildly in his chest. He takes a couple spins in the ridiculously comfy chair before leaving himself.

* * *

"So, what's the plan?" Coop rubs his hands together frantically to try to warm himself up. Eddie hands him his scarf and would hand him his leather jacket, if he didn't think Coop would look sort of ridiculous in it. The scarf though, the scarf makes him look sort of cute. It's even worse that he got it from Jackie and never gave it back.

"The plan?" Eddie turns around and walks backwards on the sidewalk, relying on the doctor to tell him if he's about to walk into someone. A few minutes later and so far so good, Coop gazing at him mischievously, still waiting on an answer. "The plan is this." He stops in his tracks and Coop stops too, standing there in the cold, red nose and hands jammed in his pockets and this adorable perplexed look on his face, like Eddie's about to trick him. It is Halloween, after all.

No sense waiting any longer.

Eddie leans forward, cups Coop's quite literally freezing cheeks in his hands and kisses him. Coop moans in surprise, almost stumbling where he stands, but soon there is a mouth pressing back against Eddie's own and a warmth that neither of them wants to break free from. Still, breathing is sort of a necessity. Coop pulls back first, moistening his lips with his tongue and wide eyes peering out at Eddie curiously. "How long have you wanted to do that?"

"Since the first day I saw you," Eddie admits. He doesn't even have to think about it, and every time he laid eyes on Coop after that: Coop being a cute goofball, Coop walking into people while staring down at his phone and tweeting, Coop spinning around in that damn chair over and over in Eddie's mind, he knew that he wanted him. Every single damn day. Coop, on the other hand, he's always been quick to jump to the chance of spending time with Eddie, but that doesn't mean the doctor's into him. "Do you feel the same way?"

Coop stares at him, tense and looking like he's freezing his ass off again. Eddie's cold too but he hardly feels it right now. Another kiss might do them both some good, but Eddie's suddenly thinking that it's not the best time. "I didn't think…," Coop sighs, hangs his head. "I'm so out of your league, Eddie."

Eddie's heart drops like a leaden weight, deeper into his chest. He wouldn't be surprised if he saw it fall right out of his body and onto the darkened sidewalk. "Don't even, Coop," he warns, both hands held up as if soothing a frightened animal. Coop looks pretty freaked out too, like he's set to back away and make a run for it any minute. At least he doesn't think that Eddie's pulling his leg, but thinking that he doesn't deserve Eddie is as bad as that if not worse. "Don't even put that thought in your head at all."

Coop shakes his head and takes a step back. Shit, Eddie thinks. "Don't even give me that bullshit about how I'm a doctor and I save people every day and not just because it's my job. Girls aren't into me, man. Most of them think I'm gay. And the guys? Well, they always move on after a month or two. And you… you could have any guy or girl you wanted. Don't do this as an apology for giving up on our friendship. I don't want it for that."

Eddie's heart starts beating again. "But you do want this? Just for the right reasons and my reasons _are_ the right ones. I wouldn't lie to you or pretend, Coop. You know me better than that. I would tell you how I really feel because that's how I really feel. Now," he lowers his hands, "let's just go get a beer and then maybe we can snag some candy somewhere. If you don't want to come back to my place that's fine. I don't expect anything from you, Coop. You're my friend and I want you to be my guy too, but I would prefer you tell me if all you want is friendship and then I'll back off."

Coop relaxes and smiles just a bit, tightening Eddie's scarf around his neck. "You're such a good guy, you know that?"

"I'm really not. I fucked up our friendship, put myself first."

"Dude," Coop cuts in. "You lost your job, cut yourself some slack. Doctors have busy lives too, I get it. It doesn't completely excuse what you did, how I felt like our friendship meant nothing to you, how I felt like it all was just a lie, but I was so happy when you came into my office today. You have no idea."

"I know," Eddie smiles. It seems too good to be true really, but before all this Eddie felt like his life was spinning out of control. He lost his job, fell out with Jackie, got selfish and neglected Coop and let his fists do the talking. But ever since he saw Coop spinning in that damn chair, it feels like his life is falling into order again. Jackie doesn't talk to him, but she can bear to look at him, he got his job back, he's started thinking before he acts and now he's getting his best friend back.

Maybe something better than that too.

Because it took Eddie losing pretty much everything to realize that Coop in his life _permanently_ -not just a quick 'hey' or grabbing burritos together at that taco stand two blocks down - was what he always wanted.

The doctor crosses his arms and stomps in place. "Take me somewhere warm and all is forgiven."

Eddie wraps an arm around his shivering shoulders and leads him on. "You got it, Coop." He notices when Coop leans into him slightly after only a minute, notices how Coop stops shivering slightly and so does Eddie, notices that Coop actually seems pretty happy and it's Eddie who's done that. For once.

They get a couple beers and then ransack Walgreens for every last bag of Halloween candy left, which isn't much, and then they head back to Coop's small apartment - really though, Eddie is done complaining - and turn the lights off and play monopoly by mere candlelight, Eddie letting him buy all the best property and hands diving for the bag of candy corn at the same time.

He takes the couch, but when he wakes up in the morning Coop is wrapped around him, drooling against his shirt and snoring softly, hand in the bag of candy corn.

Eddie always knew he was a cuddler.

 **FIN**


End file.
